“Char’s Counterattack” basically serves as the finale of the original “Mobile Suit Gundam” timeline. I’ve seen some of the movies and some of the shows but I’m probably not as well-versed in the franchise to be the ideal viewer of this movie. However, I still managed to enjoy myself with the great action and the brilliant animation.

As the battles between Earth and its colonies continues, Amuro and Char must settle their rivalry once and for all. Char plans to destroy the Earth with a gigantic meteor and nuclear weapons as punishment for the selfishness of those on the planet. Amuro and his friends will stop at nothing to prevent this catastrophe.

As I’ve not seen all the previous “Gundam” movies and shows, I wasn’t exactly up to speed with what had happened with all the characters. Still, I think you can still understand things fairly quickly considering just how complex the plot and the character arcs can be at times. We really do feel like we’re watching characters that are suffering from the fatigue of what feels like endless conflict. Of course, I was fixated on the robots whenever they were onscreen. Few things are better than seeing the mobile suits do battle in outer space with lasers blasting all over the place.

“Char’s Counterattack” is probably not the best place to start watching “Gundam”. However, it is entertaining. The animation is absolutely spectacular at times. The best thing about “Gundam”, besides the fantastic futuristic action, has to be the way it really sucks you into its world. It offers you a chance to visit a place where people legitimately feel broken by the war around them. Fans of “Gundam” need to check this out and more casual anime fans may also get some enjoyment from the action and the animation.

“Extraterrestrial” is a sci-fi flick that clearly takes a lot of inspiration from the excellent “Fire In The Sky”. The probing scene here is so similar to the alien experiment scene in “Fire In The Sky”. We’ve also had other recent alien films such as the terrific “Dark Skies”. Unfortunately, this film is just not as good. It’s certainly not a bad movie but it just fails to bring anything new to the table.

A group of friends decide to take a trip to a cabin in the woods. However, there have been reports of strange events in the area. When they see something crash, the group goes out to investigate and finds a stereotypical flying saucer. They then find themselves the targets of a hostile group of aliens.

The main characters are not very exciting. During the early scenes, we are forced to endure some rather mundane conversations. I didn’t care about these people and their relationships. The best performance comes from Michael Ironside (“Starship Troopers”, “Total Recall”) as a local Vietnam veteran and conspiracy theorist. He steals the show when he’s onscreen. The aliens look pretty good but they reminded me a lot of the aliens from “Dark Skies” and “Signs”.

The problem that “Extraterrestrial” is that it just comes far too late. We have had a ton of alien films such as “Fire In The Sky”, “Signs”, “Dark Skies” and even something as ridiculous as “Communion”. There’s nothing to see here that has not been seen in a bunch of other movies. There’s nothing really for me to criticise as it is a competently made movie other than the fact it’s totally unoriginal. If you really liked some of the other films I mentioned that you might get a kick out of this one but don’t expect to see anything revolutionary.

“Mr. Majestyk” (weird spelling) is a pretty entertaining film about a wronged guy getting his own back. It stars Charles Bronson, who has already proven he can play it perfectly in the sort of film about a wronged guy getting his own back in titles such as “Death Wish”.

In this film, a farmer by the name of Majestyk (Bronson) only cares about his melon farming and he doesn’t want no trouble from anybody but when he gets arrested for merely defending himself, he finds himself crossing paths with a hitman (Al Lettieri “The Godfather”). Soon his whole livelihood and even his life are put in jeopardy so Majestyk intends to fight back.

Charles Bronson is great as always. He’s a likeable guy but you can you feel the toughness radiate from him. Bronson always has a way with his delivery of lines and “Mr. Majestyk” is no exception. I can’t think of anybody that would be better for this sort-of role and without Bronson, this film just wouldn’t work. The bad guy is alright but nothing special. The interaction between Majestyk and the villain isn’t anything fantastic. None of the other characters are that great, which is a bit of a shame.

I like “Mr. Majestyk” because of Bronson’s performance and the action sequences; some of the shootouts and car chases are quite impressive and I even like the concept of an action film about a melon farmer. It’s not quite as good as the first “Death Wish” because it’s less believable and less powerful but I do think if you like that film or some of Bronson’s other action films, you will enjoy “Mr. Majestyk”. If you’re not a big Bronson fan then I think you may still get a kick out of it but there’s a chance you just won’t get what’s so great about it.

I’ve never really seen (no pun intended) the “Mr. Magoo” cartoons and I went into this movie with low expectations because most people apparently hate it but guess what? It isn’t awful… actually it’s kind-of funny.

Leslie Nielsen (“Airplane!”, “Forbidden Planet”) stars as the visually-impaired buffoon Mr. Magoo as he unknowingly becomes involved in a theft of a precious jewel from the fictional state of Kuristan. Mr. Magoo becomes a suspect as he’s pursued by two incompetent agents (Stephen Tobolowsky “Groundhog Day”, Ernie Hudson “Ghostbusters”). Will Magoo be able to prove himself innocent and will Magoo’s son (Matt Keeslar “Scream 3”) win the heart of the lovely Stacey Sampanahoditra (Jennifer Garner “Juno”).

Leslie Nielsen proves why he’s such a talented slapstick comedian in some hilarious stunts such as one in which he walks onto a paddle steamer and another in which he starts moving a chicken around to the commands of a fitness instructor. The moronic agents pursuing Magoo are quite amusing. Matt Keeslar is just about acceptable as Magoo’s son. Jennifer Garner is good as Stacey but it feels like she should have more screen time. By far the most disappointing character is one of the film’s villains, who is played by Malcolm McDowell (“Star Trek: Generations”), who gets to do next to nothing. You have to love Magoo’s dog that helps him out throughout the movie.

Many that have seen “Mr. Magoo” (or merely heard about it) will probably find it hard to take my praise of the movie seriously so maybe I’m wrong and this is just a guilty pleasure. I think if you actually give this film a chance then you’ll enjoy it as I think there are numerous amusing slapstick moments. The opening and closing scenes and done in the style of the cartoons and the animation looks great. Many critics have pointed out that the film ends with a disclaimer, it informs us about how the film is not meant to accurately portray any real blind people and I agree with most that it amusingly unnecessary.

“Mr. & Mrs. Smith” doesn’t receive its rating simply because it is a bad movie but because it marks a terrible plague that has infected cinema (and wider society). It was only made to cash-in on the fact some people care about the real-life relationship of its stars. It seems the script was removed and a camera merely appears to be following the couple during their normal life in-between the mindless action sequences.

In “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”, Angelina Jolie (“Wanted”) and Brad Pitt (“Fight Club”) play rival assassins married together but neither is aware of the other’s real job. When they both are sent on the same mission, they try to take each other out but then realise they need to work together to beat their agencies that set them up.

The stars sit there looking very disinterested and appear as if they would rather be watching a cooking tv show than having a role in this film. The conversations they have are boring. The only real reason the two were cast is because they are married in real-life, which I don’t care about in the slightest. The pair never come across as plausible assassins in the movie because they just look bored all the time.

I can think of the kind of people who would love this film but those aren’t the kind of people I would like to have anything to do with. It’s a sad state when cinema has been overrun neither with a thirst for creativity nor a desire for talent but simply a wish to see some celebrities onscreen together. We are forced to sit through several tedious and ridiculous action scenes that lack any form of fun followed by some of the dullest conversation put to film, I have seriously heard more interesting things at a barber shop.

“Moulin Rouge!” is visually captivating but I did not care for the characters nor did I care for the music. Few musicals may look as spectacular as this but the best ones feature characters we can invest in and songs we want to sing along to.

Set in turn of the century Paris, “Moulin Rouge!” follows Christian (Ewan McGregor “Trainspotting”, “The Island”), an aspiring young poet from London. He falls in love with the glamorous courtesan, Satine (Nicole Kidman “Australia”, “The Golden Compass”), but she must pretend to be in love with a cruel aristocrat (Richard Roxburg “Van Helsing”) if the Moulin Rouge is to be successful.

Sadly, Ewan McGregor cannot sing particularly well. It is a fatal flaw in any musical to have a star that cannot sing. Nicole Kidman is actually pretty funny as Satine and her singing is a little better than McGregor’s. The romantic chemistry between Christian and Satine is not anything special. Jim Broadbent (“The Iron Lady”) and John Leguizamo (“Spawn”) also appear in the movie but leave little impact. Richard Roxburgh is tedious as the villain. Kylie Minogue (“Bio-Dome”) has a cameo and you find yourself wishing she had a more prominent role considering she can sing.

The music in “Moulin Rouge!” is fairly strange; most of the singing scenes combine bits and pieces of a variety of songs that do not really gel together. One sequence contains bits and pieces from “Voulez-Vous Coucher Avec Moi”, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend”. I was left very puzzled by the music choices of the filmmakers. The film still looks fantastic but I cannot really recommend a film on looks alone. I was struggling to care about the characters and the story, which all felt rather clichéd. Maybe some will like this avant-garde musical but it was not really for me.

After “Godzilla”, Toho made several other monsters movies including “Mothra”. This is a cheesy but fun giant monster film that is worth checking out, especially if you are a fan of the “Godzilla” movies. It’s a shame monster flicks such as this get overlooked simply because they were made outside America.

After survivors of a shipwreck manage to survive on a mysterious island believed to have high levels of nuclear radiation on it, an expedition to the island leads to the discovery of two tiny girls. When a greedy businessman kidnaps them in the hopes of exploiting them for financial gain, the giant monster Mothra is awakened and heads to Japan to rescue them. Guns, planes and tanks are useless against the creature that will not stop until it has rescued the girls.

The characters in “Mothra” are pretty much the same as the characters you find in other Japanese monster movies. Some of the characters are clearly designed to be comedic but the gags often fall flat. The twin girls become a little annoying with their almost constant singing. Mothra is a great giant monster and we get to see her in two different forms. It’s great watching Mothra decimate large areas of Japan with the military powerless to stop here.

“Mothra” is good Japanese monster movie and do not ignore just because Godzilla is not in the title. Although Mothra would go on to appear in several of the “Godzilla” movies, it’s nice to see her on her own. Of course, it’s a bit of a shame that you do not get to see Mothra do battle with any other monsters but the film itself is entertaining. The action is good, I liked the special effects and overall, I find the movie to be rather satisfying. It might not be for everybody but I recommend “Mothra”.

I do have a soft spot for giant monster movies and so I enjoyed “Mothra vs. Godzilla” (also known as “Godzilla vs. The Thing”). Here you get to see Toho’s two most famous monsters battle one another. It’s silly and it’s predictable but I found it hard not to enjoy watching a giant dinosaur fight a giant moth.

The arrival of a giant egg on the shores of Japan leads to the discovery of a mysterious island that has been decimated by the effects of nuclear bomb testing. Godzilla soon appears and begins to attack but the Japanese military are no match for the ‘King of the Monsters’. Japan’s only hope is to get Mothra to fight Godzilla.

The characters in the “Godzilla” films are not known for being very interesting and “Mothra vs. Godzilla” fits the pattern. The human characters are not entirely unlikeable but the real focus is clearly on the monsters. Once Mothra and Godzilla are on the scene, the film really picks up and it’s great to see the two fight. We get to see Mothra in two forms, which is good. Godzilla and Mothra both look pretty impressive considering when this film was made. Their battle is one of the best fights in the “Godzilla” franchise.

“Mothra vs. Godzilla” starts off a little slow and at times feels like a little bit of rerun of the original “Mothra”. However, the movie does get a lot better as it goes on and the highlights are definitely the fight sequences. These movies are known for having over the top monster battles and “Mothra vs. Godzilla” does not disappoint. While this is not the best “Godzilla” movie, it is a good entry in a series that has its up and downs. However, those that dislike giant monster flicks are not going to be impressed.

“Mother!” is a demented film from director Darren Aronofsky (“Noah”, “Black Swan”). The movie is biblical allegory and while it does not always seem convey the messages of scripture all that well, it does create an engaging surreal experience from start to finish.

A couple (Jennifer Lawrence “The Hunger Games”, Javier Bardem “No Country For Old Men”) find their peaceful existence disturbed when uninvited guests arrive at their remote mansion home. At first, it is just mildly inconveniencing but the presence of others soon descends into a situation so bad that it threatens their surroundings and even their relationship with one another.

Nobody in “Mother!” actually has a name. Lawrence’s character is merely credited as ‘Mother’ and Bardem’s as ‘Him’. The film focuses on Mother as she tries to maintain some form of order while everything around her is becoming more chaotic. Lawrence does a really great job. Bardem is good as Him. The interactions between the two are interesting to watch. Many of the other characters do not doing anything bad, they are just merely invading the space of the main characters; they make Lawrence’s character feel invisible. It’s fascinating to watch so much tension created by people’s mere close proximity to others.

“Mother!” has caused controversy for some of its graphic imagery and I can understand why but I think it helps create a truly nightmarish scenario. The film finds unconventional and refreshing ways to explore religious and philosophical themes and concepts. As with “Noah”, some people seem to be just wanting to criticise the film because it deviates so much from “The Bible” but I would prefer to just take it for what it is because no movie is going to be a substitute for “The Bible”. This is a powerful psychological film that is definitely worth checking out.

Again, this is proof that movies based on videogames never really work. To be fair to “Mortal Kombat”, this is actually not that bad and for a long time, this one was probably the best videogame adaptation out there.

In “Mortal Kombat”, Liu Kang (Robin Shou “Beverly Hills Ninja”), Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) and Sonya Blade (Bridgette Wilson “Billy Madison”) are three warriors that must enter a fierce tournament known as ‘Mortal Kombat’. They must fight for the Earth realm so the evil Shang Tsung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa “Pearl Harbour”) and his legion of monstrous villains cannot transform the planet into a chaotic nightmare. Now, these three will need all the physical and mental strength to combat the likes of Sub-Zero and the four-armed creature Goro.

The acting in this film is not good. None of the three heroic warriors prove to be entertaining. Christopher Lambert (“Fortress”, “Highlander”) is really bad as Raiden because he does nothing. Lambert was only selected for films such as “Highlander” because of his fighting abilities and not because of his acting (he could barely speak English) so why not have him do some fighting in here? Scorpion and Sub-Zero are both done well as they don’t talk. Shang Tsung is pretty fun. Kano is rubbish though. Goro is really bad as although he looks menacing at first, he’s designed really badly and they actually have him speak so any mystery he had goes away faster than a speeding bullet.

The fight scenes in “Mortal Kombat” are surprisingly good but don’t expect them to be as bloody as the battles in the videogames. The acting in “Mortal Kombat” is lousy, the special effects look incredibly weak and the plot is average at best. It’s surprising a videogame with little to no plot has actually made for one of the better videogame adaptations I’ve seen so far and I’ve seen a lot of them.